Ten years ago, The Good Acre opened its Twin Cities doors with a simple idea: If we could make it easier for local farmers to sell their food, and easier for individuals and businesses alike to buy it, then we could build a stronger, more resilient food system for everyone.
A decade later, that idea has proven not just true, but essential.
Anyone paying attention to national headlines knows that our broader food system is entering another season of uncertainty. Federal nutrition assistance programs are facing cuts. Rising prices and complex supply chains are stressing consumers. Extreme weather is disrupting harvests across the country. And many communities continue to feel the effects of pandemic-era instability, especially those already facing economic barriers.
We cannot wait for national systems to fix themselves. The solutions we need are already growing here at home.
That’s the lesson of our first 10 years at The Good Acre, and it’s why we’re doubling down on what’s working.
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When national supply chains falter, Minnesota moves food differently; through relationships and trust, not thousand-mile shipping routes. Ten years ago, we began working with just a dozen farmers. Today, more than 168 farmers and food producers — the majority farmers of color — sell their products through our food hub. This season alone, our work generated $3.5 million in local food sales, moving delicious, nutritious items through our food hub and into schools, food shelves, hospitals, restaurants and home kitchens.
That didn’t happen because conditions were perfect. It happened because local farmers, buyers and community members stood alongside one another and made it happen.
And despite the numerous pressures farmers face — rising costs, unpredictable weather, inaccessible resources, complex markets — we are seeing real success. We’re seeing farmers expand acreage, invest in infrastructure and build viable enterprises. Schools are serving fresh, regionally grown produce that kids recognize while hunger relief partners distribute culturally relevant foods that carry comfort and dignity. And we’re seeing Minnesotans choose local food not just because it tastes better, but because they understand the impact it has on their neighbors.
This is what a resilient food system looks like. It’s not abstract. It’s happening right here.
In an era of big problems, we often assume big solutions must come from the top. But our work turns that assumption on its head.
Aggregation — the unglamorous work of coordinating dozens of farmers and dozens of buyers, managing quality, logistics, storage and timing — is one of the most powerful tools we have to strengthen local economies and feed communities well. It gives small- and mid-sized farmers access to markets they couldn’t reach alone. It gives institutions one reliable point of connection instead of a patchwork of relationships. And it keeps more dollars circulating close to home.
This kind of coordinated, community-rooted infrastructure is exactly what national systems struggle to offer.
When disruptions like SNAP cuts go into effect, it is local food shelves and local partners who fill the gaps. When global supply chains falter, it is regional producers who step in. When policy changes stall programs like Farm to School, it is school nutrition staff who keep showing up for their students. And when extreme weather knocks out distant crops, it is local farmers — often immigrant and first-generation growers — who keep harvesting.
The Good Acre is just one piece of that local safety net, and what we’ve seen in 10 years is clear: When communities invest in local infrastructure, everyone benefits from a more stable, connected foundation.
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Minnesotans have a long tradition of responding to uncertainty with collaboration. We build cooperatives. We form networks. We show up for one another. We don’t wait for perfect circumstances; we create them together.
Whether you are a policymaker, a shopper, a donor, a school administrator, a restaurant owner, a grocer or a neighbor, you have a role to play in shaping the future of food in our region. You can ask where your food comes from. You can choose local when you’re able. You can support organizations that connect growers to communities. You can advocate for policies that keep food dollars circulating close to home.
You can be part of what comes next. The next decade of resilience will not be built somewhere else. It will be built here, in Minnesota, by all of us, for all of us.
Theresa Schneider McCormick is executive director of The Good Acre, which is based in Falcon Heights.
The post Local solutions can bring farm food to tables in need appeared first on MinnPost.
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